Vocational training

Young men working in a YMCA carpentry workshop at Jericho Vocational Training Centre

Anne Paq

Y Care International has been supporting a vocational training centre for young men and women in Jericho since 1994, and from 2006-2010 gave support to young people through a specific programme providing pioneering and meaningful skills training. These skills enabled them to increase their opportunities for employment and to earn a steady income.

What was achieved?
• 518 young men and women were trained in skills such as metal work, auto mechanics, painting, carpentry and graphic design
• 45 young women graduated from short-term IT courses
• We supported 80 per cent of graduates to find employment within six months of graduating from the centre, enabling them to financially support themselves and their families
• We provided 78 per cent of students with one-to-one counselling sessions enabling them to deal positively with past and future experiences of trauma

The achievements of East Jerusalem YMCA’s vocational training centre have been so successful that they were recognised by the Palestinian Authority, which is now providing support to the centre’s running costs. The training centre is the only centre in the West Bank to receive direct budget support from the Palestinian Authority, so this is a significant achievement of the partnership between Y Care International and East Jerusalem YMCA.

Terry Waite and young trainees learning secretarial skills and working at an electricity company in Jericho

Anne Paq

How Y Care International continues to help
Many of the trainees at the centre come from impoverished families throughout the West Bank and many of them live in refugee camps. Y Care International provides support through sponsorship of the young women who attend the training centre, many of whom would not be able to attend without this additional support, and also through technical support to ensure the sustainability of the centre. The young women are given access to non-traditional vocational training courses, such as graphic design and computer maintenance, which sets them apart from their peers who are taught more traditional vocational skills, such as handicrafts and secretarial skills.

Y Care International has also supported the vocational training centre to develop a financial sustainability plan to keep their vital project running in the future.

 

This project has been funded with support from the European Union and the Dominic Simpson Memorial Trust.